Through the hardships she has endured, Esperance Mfurakazi is determined to work hard and build the life she always dreamt of.

Esperance lived in the Democratic Republic of the Congo until a war broke out. She and her family moved to Burundi where they lived in a refugee camp. A few days after arriving, the camp was attacked by a group wanting to rid their country of refugees. Esperance watched her father be burned alive and witness countless other atrocities as she fled the camp.

In 2009, Esperance and her family decided to leave Burundi. It was a difficult decision as the family didn’t want to leave the place where her father died. After moving to another refugee camp in Kenya, Esperance was approved by the UN to be resettled in the United States.

When Esperance first arrived in Fargo, North Dakota, the first thing she noticed was the tremendous cold; it was the first time she had ever seen snow. After living in stone houses most of her life, she was afraid her new home would blow over in the wind. Since then, she has grown more comfortable in Fargo. Her favorite subjects in school are math and science. Esperance wants to become a doctor and return to Africa to provide free health care.